Sie sind auf Seite 1von 5

Lefenfeld 1

Jason Lefenfeld
Rebecca Agosta
UWRT 1102
26 July 2016
Effects of Technology Use on Adolescent Development

The prevalence of internet connected devices has grown immensely over the past ten
years. Only 36 percent of homes with children had computers with Internet access in 1996
(Subrahmanyam 8). Today almost 80 percent of adolescents in the United States own a
smartphone, as do 86 percent of people ages 18-29 (George). Smartphones are ubiquitous in
todays society, particularly among younger generations. Children and adolescents today have
nearly constant connectivity to the internet, and they are the first people to grow up with such
access. Internet access has many clear benefits, like instant access to nearly any information and
easy social connections, but it also presents issues that parents need to be aware of. Parents of
adolescents should be aware of the way the nature of communication has changed with
technological advances, and how it may be impacting their childs development and social
interactions.
While parents are able to observe their childrens face-to face social interactions, today
much of adolescents communication take place in the virtual realm. Young people in the modern
world are constantly connected to each other through online social networks, which have
changed the nature of interpersonal relationships. Adolescents today face the typical challenges
of social development, but the Internet provides a new environment for these interactions to take
place in and greatly shapes the manner of communication (Greenfield, Yan 393). Ninety-three

Lefenfeld 2
percent of people aged thirteen to seventeen report daily internet usage, with the majority of use
being some form of communication (Mills 5). Concern has been raised over how this may be
effecting adolescents social development, during critical stages of adolescent development.
Communication through media has been shown to be associated with decreased feelings of
bonding, in part because of a lack of interpersonal cues (Mills 8). In many cases however,
Internet use augments communication rather than replacing it, as teens report very frequently
using social media while simultaneously communicating with friends in person (Greenfield, Yan
391). Despite not necessarily reducing interpersonal interactions, constant media use is likely to
reduce the quality of these interactions. Studies have shown that people who use mobile phones
during in person conversations are perceived as significantly less polite, and this is exacerbated if
the phone activity was self-initiated rather than in response to a notification (Abeele et al. 562).
Cyber bullying is another reason that parents should be taking an interest in their
childrens use of technology. A recent study by conducted by Kimberly Mitchell et al. compared
in-person bullying incidents with technology-only incidents. The results showed that technologyonly incidents didnt have as great an emotional impact as in-person encounters. They were seen
as easier to stop by the victim, and were also less likely to involve a perceived power imbalance
between the harasser and victim. Incidents involving in-person encounters as well as the Internet
were found to be the most harmful however, and these represented 31% of all incidents (Mitchell
et al. 193). They were the most damaging because the victims felt the harassment more
persistently, due to their constant connection with social media. These incidents were also likely
to involve bullies that are in the victims social circles, and therefore the incidents would be
public to everyone they knew, and were more likely to involve multiple perpetrators. Cyber
bullying also allows the offender to remain anonymous, which is a likely risk factor. Studies have

Lefenfeld 3
shown that the anonymous online bullies are typically real-life bullies as well, and the same is
true for most of the victims (George). So while the Internet may not necessarily create bullies, it
is a tool that they have harnessed to harass others.
Smartphones effect on sleep duration and quality is another potential cause of concern.
While sleep hygiene problems among adolescents is not a new phenomenon, smartphones are
having a widely detrimental impact. Four out of five adolescents report sleeping with their
phones in or on their bed, some even under their pillow, so they can wake up to respond to
friends and the majority report text messaging during the night (George). Use of mobile phones
during the night increases the odds of being very tired by between two and four times
(George). Research suggests that merely the light emitted by mobile phones interferes with
getting proper sleep cycles. This is particularly problematic for young people because
adolescence is a time of increased vulnerability to mental health issues, such as depression
(Lemola et al.405). One major risk factor of developing depressive symptoms during
adolescence is sleep disturbance. Excessive media use late at night is another risk factor of
depression (Lemola et al. 405). This suggests that constant use of technology may be an
important factor in mental health issues faced by todays adolescents. Another issue to consider
is that adolescence is also when people learn to drive and begin driving on their own. Sleep
deprivation is a bigger risk factor for vehicle accidents than alcohol or drug use, so inexperienced
and unrested drivers are a danger to themselves and others on the road (George).
These potential issues with pervasive internet use dont mean that the increasing
prevalence of technology among adolescents is inherently a bad thing, or that the downsides
outweigh the benefits. Today anyone with a smartphone is able to immediately access what is
more or less the entirety of human knowledge. Social media allows people to stay more easily

Lefenfeld 4
connected with those they care about, and meet new people with common interests regardless of
geographical distance. And while adolescents today may be less likely to memorize specific facts
or pieces information, they are more likely to know how to immediately retrieve that content in
the future, suggesting that they are perhaps adapting to the new world model rather than behind
hindered by it. The pervasive access of technology does, however, present new challenges to be
faced by todays adolescents that earlier generations never had to consider. Parents should
educate themselves on how technology is being used, and the consequences of such use, so they
can better understand and assist with their childrens development.

Lefenfeld 5
Works Cited
Abeele, Mariek M.p. Vanden. "The Effect of Mobile Messaging during a Conversation on
Impression Formation and Interaction Quality." Computers in Human Behavior 62
(2016): 562-69. PsycINFO 1887 [OCLC]. Web.
Ciarrochi, Joseph, et al. "The Development Of Compulsive Internet Use And Mental Health: A
Four-Year Study Of Adolescence." Developmental Psychology 52.2 (2016): 272-283.
PsycARTICLES. Web. 27 July 2016.
Greenfield, Patricia, and Zheng Yan. "Children, Adolescents, And The Internet: A New Field Of
Inquiry In Developmental Psychology." Developmental Psychology 42.3 (2006): 391394. PsycARTICLES. Web. 27 July 2016.
George, Madeleine. "The Risks and Rewards of Being an Adolescent in the Digital Age."
American Psychological Association. N.p., Dec. 2014. Web. 06 Aug. 2016.
Lemola, Sakari, Nadine Perkinson-Gloor, Serge Brand, Julia F. Dewald-Kaufmann, and
Alexander Grob. "Adolescents Electronic Media Use at Night, Sleep Disturbance, and
Depressive Symptoms in the Smartphone Age." J Youth Adolescence Journal of Youth
and Adolescence 44.2 (2014): 405-18. PsycARTICLES [OCLC]. Web. 6 Aug. 2016.
Mills, Kathryn L. "Possible Effects of Internet Use on Cognitive Development in Adolescence."
Media and Communication MaC 4.3 (2016): 4. PsycINFO. Web. 6 Aug. 2016.
Mitchell, Kimberly J., et al. "The Role Of Technology In Peer Harassment: Does It Amplify
Harm For Youth?." Psychology Of Violence 6.2 (2016): 193-204. PsycARTICLES. Web.
27 July 2016.
Prizant-Passal, Shiri, Tomer Shechner, and Idan M. Aderka. "Social Anxiety And Internet Use
A Meta-Analysis: What Do We Know? What Are We Missing?." Computers In Human
Behavior 62.(2016): 221-229. PsycINFO. Web. 1 Aug. 2016.
Vanden Abeele, Mariek M. P., Marjolijn L. Antheunis, and Alexander P. Schouten. "The Effect
Of Mobile Messaging During A Conversation On Impression Formation And Interaction
Quality." Computers In Human Behavior 62.(2016): 562-569. PsycINFO. Web. 1 Aug.
2016.

Das könnte Ihnen auch gefallen